H. L. D. Mahindapala

The history of terrorism in Sri Lanka reveals a clear
pattern. The first to take up arms in the post-Independent era were the
misguided Sinhala youth. They were educated youth desperately running in search
of a quick solution to establish their classless paradise. Their violence did
not take them anywhere.

The Tamil youth were the second to take up arms. Most
of their cadres too consisted of educated Tamil youth running in search of a
speedy route to establish their mono-ethnic paradise. At the end of a
three-decade war they ended up in the bottom of the Nandikadal Lagoon.

Now the Muslim youth have bombed their way into the
global headlines. They shot into the limelight on the morning of Easter Sunday
taking everyone by surprise. Unlike the two preceding terrorist groups the
local Muslim terrorists who carried backpacks loaded with explosives seems to
be dummies carrying out the orders and agenda of a hidden hand directing them
from abroad. To begin with they were echoing the imported hate politics fed to
them by the extremist local agents running fragmented jihadist cells. Nor have
they produced a calculated, well-defined ideology against the state, like the
other two terrorist organisations, arguing that it should be destroyed and
replaced with their political models. However, it is known that the preachers
in their cells and madrassas have been indoctrinating the youth with violent
interpretations of the Koran with the aim of converting Sri Lanka into an
Islamic Caliphate. That constitutes a part of the larger agenda of ISIS,
without any local content in it.

Running through all three violent movements of the
youth is a manufactured ideology tailored to radicalise and convert them into
violent politics as the solution to their indoctrinated, imagined and real
problems. The Sinhala youth took to Marxists revolutionary ideology reduced to
five lectures. The Tamil youth took to the ideology of the Saivite Jaffna
Vellala supremacists to create Eelam – the paradise of mono-ethnic extremism.
And the Muslim youth seems to have jumped into a similar ideology believing
that they could achieve their Islamic salvation at the end of violence.

If history is any guide then the preceding two violent
movements point to a bitter end. Like the other two preceding terrorist groups
the Muslim terrorists too are doomed to end up achieving nothing. Besides, the
odds are tilted heavily against the Muslim terrorists, both internationally and
locally. (More of this later).

They have begun with a big bang which had echoed round
the world. That is about all they could achieve: making big noises if
they are to continue down this path of violence. Whether they have the capacity
to sustain the violence of the Easter Massacre on a mass scale for a prolong
period is questionable. Based more on the historical evidence of the past two youth
revolts than on the skimpy details available on the Muslim youth, my conclusion
is quite simple: neither the prevailing hostile international climate against
every kind of Muslim violence, nor the national ethos of a thriving and
conservative Muslim trading community dependent on peace and stability, is
conducive for the Muslim youth to sustain their campaign of violence for
long.

Besides the wobbly Yahapalanaya government, which was
going softly-softly on rising Muslim radicalisation and violence, has at last
woken up to the grim and destabilising realities that had blown their tops off.
It is the magnitude of the simultaneous explosions hitting three points of the
compass – east, west and the immediate north – that shook the foundations of
Sri Lankan establishment

The Easter Sunday blast is likely to change – at least
in the short run — the conventional image of the Muslims. They were seen
as the more emancipated and liberal Muslims not committed to radical Islam. But
after the East Sunday Massacre it is likely that they will be bundled with the
rest of the ideologically driven Muslim fanatics abroad committed to irrational
violence. The latest Reuter’s report which reveals the ISIS hand behind the
Easter Massacre can only reinforce the image of being ruthless religious
fanatics.

Radicalisation takes sense sensibility out of the
minds of the impatient youth looking for instant solutions. And politicised
religion is packed with hate. Both are incendiary forces that can drive the
impulsive youth
into insane fits of violence.

Of course, the initial blast that shook Easter Sunday
was massive and impressive. The (1) precision timing that went of like
clockwork, (2) the gigantic scale of the blasts hitting targets in east, west
and the near north simultaneously,(3) the selected targets of Christian
Churches and hotels packed with Western tourists (4) the organisation capacity to
piece together the various arms of the military-style operation that exploded
on Easter Sunday (5) the blind faith of the suicide bombers that walked the
lethal distance to their fatal end and that of 350 other victims, point clearly
to hidden brains beyond the borders of the local Muslims.

There is, no doubt, that the suicide bombers were on a
political mission. But what was it? Also, terrorist acts are executed to convey
a political message. What is the message behind the biggest ever terrorist
operation on Sri Lanka soil?

This explosion which hit like a bolt from the blue
makes no sense in the Sri Lankan context. Apart from sporadic tensions – some
of which have been caused by National Thowheeth Jamaat (NTJ) – the
Sinhala-Muslim relations had not stretched to breaking point to provoke an
attack of this magnitude. Mainstream Muslim politics was for co-existence
without resorting to extremist violence. Interventions at the highest levels
from both sides have succeeded in snuffing out any communal conflagration and
containing the violence. In fact, Muslim leaders have been complaining to the
authorities that the NTJ is a serious threat to their lives too. Nor has there
been a mass following for Islamic extremism either at the top or at the bottom
layers of Muslim society.

As of now Muslim violence has been confined to a
minority. But it is a minority that has crept up, sedulously and
surreptitiously, to parts of the highest echelons of the Muslim hierarchy. If
allowed to go unchecked it can become the majority. The description of this
group given by Ruwan Wijewardene, State Minister of Defence, is revealing and
alarming, to say the least. He said: What I can
also say about this group of suicide bombers is that most of them were
well-educated and come from middle or upper middle class, so they are
financially independent and their families are quite stable financially. That
is a worrying factor in this. Some of them studied in other countries, they
hold degrees and were quite well-educated people.”

This explains the background and the potential threat
to the future but not the cause behind the stunning Easter Sunday massacre.
Invariably political protests and violence target the state. But the Muslim
suicide bombers did not target the state per se. They went straight to two
non-state, non-Sinhala-Buddhist targets: 1. Christian churches packed with
Easter Sunday devotees and 2. hotels packed with Western holiday-makers
lining up for their Sunday breakfast.

Both targets were selected to make global headlines in
the Christian West. Any harm to the Christian worshippers inside churches in
one of the holiest days in the Christian calendar and Western holiday-makers
would instinctively pull the heart strings and the conscience of the West.

It is the selection of these two targets that do not
make sense. Why should local suicide bombers target the Churches and the hotels
when their grievances are supposed to be against the Sinhala-Buddhists with
whom they have been having some sporadic sparring in recent times? Besides, none
of these two institutions has rubbed against the local Muslims. So why did the
strategists behind Operation Easter Massacre target the Churches and the
hotels? Is the message coded in these two targets?

It is at this point that Ruwan Wijewardene’s explanation
gains credibility. He said that the targets were chosen as retaliation for the
massacre of the Muslims at Christchurch by the Australian white-supremacist
Brenton Hanson Terrant. But is the local Muslim that concerned about what
happened in far away New Zealand to blow up Churches and hotels? No. But the
vindictive politics of their masters in the failed Islamic State, pursuing
.anti-American, anti-Christian agenda, are bent on targeting the sacred symbols
of the West. Since the Sri Lankan Muslims are committed ideologically to follow
the political line laid down by their Islamic masters abroad they became the
latest suicidal messengers of death to the West. They even went as far as
imitating their counterparts abroad by videoing their martyrdom, a la the
jihadists in the Middle East.

Second, the Easter Massacre was to deliver a political
message to Donald Trump. He was boasting that the ISIS is dead. On the morning
of East Sunday they told him that they are still alive and kicking. The
ideology behind the Easter Massacre is clearly expressed in the two main
targets allied to Western interests. It also contains a direct message to
Trumpian braggadocio and arrogance. They picked Sri Lanka because it was fast
turning into a base for American expansion in the Indian Ocean.

Like all terrorists they have picked the most iconic
targets for maximum impact in the minds of the West. Targeting them selectively
on one of the holiest days of the Christian world delivers an unambiguous
political message to the West saying: If we can’t get you in the
West we can get you in soft spots prepared by incompetent, complacent and
back-biting rulers in the East who, incidentally, are cozying up to the West.

The tattered remnants standing as sad ruins of
churches and hotels and the 350 victims debunk the usual fiction spun by some
local political pundits who continue to blame the Sinhala-Buddhists. Their spin
is to white-wash the Muslim terrorists saying that the suicide bombers were on
a mission to get even with the Sinhala-Buddhists for sporadic attacks that had
occurred in recent time. This line of attack on the Sinhala-Buddhist runs
against the evidence of the bloody ruins staring in their face. If the Easter
Massacre was to teach the Sinhala-Buddhist a lesson why did they attack the
Christian Churches and hotels packed with Westerners? This is the most notable
facet of the Easter Sunday attack. The suicide bombers skipped the
Sinhala-Buddhists, they skipped the Hindu Tamils and they went straight for the
Christians in churches and the Westerners holidaying in hotels.

If the Easter Sunday massacre was to send a clear
message to the West then the international and local agents have succeeded
beyond their expectations. This initial message is now reverberating globally.
It says unmistakeably that the Jihadist power, packed with religious
fanaticism, has found a new base to attack the West. But what is going to be
their next step? Will they turn inward and intensify their attacks against the
other religionists?

Violence of any sort will not take the Muslim
terrorist anywhere. If the other two varieties of terrorism (Sinhala and Tamil
youth) failed to win against the state what are the chances of the Muslim
variety winning? The state is sufficiently prepared and experienced now to meet
challenges of terrorists having beaten the world’s deadliest terrorist, the
LTTE. Most of all, it has the tacit support of the majority of the Muslims in
the mainstream. ISIS and its local agents have had some beginners luck by
taking the state by surprise. But the chances of Muslim terrorists becoming a
formidable challenge to the state are very remote. Besides, before they take on
the state they will have to grab power from the established Muslim hierarchy.
They will also have to combat the anti-Muslim counter-terror forces of the West
and also India.

The upshot of the Easter Massacre has been to increase
and reinforce Islamaphobia. Until East Sunday the Muslims in the democratic
mainstream have been a formidable force negotiating craftily behind the scene,
with both main parties, bargaining with the non-violent votes. But the
exploding bombs have devastated their image and reduced the power of bargaining
with both major parties. They cannot be seen to be honeymooning, or playing
footsy with the Muslims after the backlash of East Sunday sweeping the nation.
The government, in particular, will have to face the charge of putting Bodu
Bala Sena in jail and letting NTJ run amok without any restraint.

The state is now in a favourable political climate to
crack down on Muslim extremism with hardly any pressure from international or
national interventionists. Besides, the Muslim terrorists can never reach
the militarised power of the Tamil Tigers and challenge the state to yield to
their demands, whatever they may be. Of the three varieties of terrorism
the Muslims will be the weakest, purely on demographic counts.

When the dust settles down, the democratic state of
Sri Lanka will rise again triumphantly, hoping that the last remaining Indian
Tamil youth will not decide to go the way of the other three failed terrorists

The suspected terrorist organization originated in Tamil Nadu in 2004 and was introduced to Sri Lanka in 2007. Their first terrorist attack took place on July 26, 2009 in Beruwala Buhari mosque killing a number of people; injuring scores and damaging the mosque.

You responded elsewhere to an initial comment I made that this attack was by a small jihadist Muslim group allied to the Islamic State, but was in fact a largelyl home-grown terrorist effort with only marginal IS support.

I have been pondering your comment in the light of the emerging evidence (9 all Sri Lankan suicide bombers, local training bases in at least 5 places within the country, large amounts of foreign and local funds, and credible reports of support from established politicians providing resources including land, cover stories, and legal/police support to spring the arrested from prison) over the last few days.

I am now coming around to the view that your point is well taken: that this attack had very substantial support from the Sri Lankan Muslim community as you claim. In other words, this is not a small “family effort”as initially portrayed with foreign IS support.

I also think the long and short term activities of some prominent Muslim politician, Rishard Bathiudeen, M L A M Hizbullah, Rauf Akeem and Asath Sally among them, should be investigated in depth for supporting anti-national activity by Muslim groups.

Most vociferous sections of the local Muslim community instead of condemning this Islamic terrorism as it is try hard to whitewash it, justify it (claiming BBS, etc.) and even pin the blame on unrelated others (e.g. Colombo telegraph writers and commentators). Assath Sally blamed Gotabaya for protecting NTJ in a TV debate which is totally absurd!

The silent majority cannot be forgiven for being silent at this stage. They must come out and condemn this Islamic terrorism without reservations.

This paints a very sad and dangerous picture of the situation.

I also noticed some Buddhist elements trying to paint this as a Christian-Muslim conflict. Their logic fails at the next event.

Sri Lanka’s people are divided as ever. Once again it is for true Sri Lankans to protect it against all cults.

LTTE leaders are mostly Christian. Christian/ Catholic church in the north supported LTTE for 30 years.
Even the most venerated Madu shrine was taken away by Rayappu Joeshp (Mannar bishop ) together with LTTE.

Katthanakudi , a little know village then, now looks like a small middle east town is where most of these terrorist originated, not far from the bombed Church in Batticaloa. Some decades ago LTTE cadres stormed in to a little mosque there and killed over hundred worshiping Muslims, similar to incident in Christchurch.

Traitor mussie deshapaluwans are responsible for the carnage who over promoted the fastest breeding religion
aka religion of utter violence. These traitors encouraged fast breeding and baby machines went into overdrive
and quadrupled the mussie numbers during the long protracted war (dragged on by the terrorists supporters to
stay in power, United National Ponnaparty saying catholic tigers of tamil drealam were invincible).

Mussies enter countries in all four, keep quiet and breed relentlessly. Once the numbers are right, then start
murdering the natives and expect hand over the country to the menace. This dirty, disgusting, subhuman trick
worked in the olden days to turn old Buddhist iran, afghanisthan, pakesthan, maldives, bangladesh, malaysia and indonesia to mussie countries within a few hundred years since people didn’t know until the menace come
into their doorsteps. In today’s tv, internet, fb etc. world people going to know what traitor mussies up to and fight
back to save their livelihoods.

This is what the fast breeders tried in Buddhist Myanmar after creeping there over the border from hell hole bangladesh, bred relentlessly and start murdering the natives there. Luckily for them, they
had a patriotic leader (a woman) and the menace quickly disappeared to where they came from with their baby
machines. Myanmar saved. Buddhist Sri Lanka? We have a ponna ralak, led by the chief ponnaiya who has a
voice to put any terrorist wanting to blow themselves up in big crowds. A beautiful, blooming country was
destroyed in just 4 years by ponnaiya and its samanla bunch. World’s number one tourst destination gone to the bottom of the list, millions of people going to lose their jobs. Still lajja nathi bxjja nathi aga matta hanging on to
the Pathala Man job like a leech.

Arrest all deshapaluwans who brought Sri Lanka to this despicable state starting with traitor low life bada udin,
a sad ali (not happy because of not enough children?), xxxxheem, empty dog aka his bxlla, mujibxlla rahabxlla,
owl fousi who is always in government to promote breeding, Kuragala encroachment etc. etc. and ban the SLMC
aka Sri Lanka Multiplying Community and traitor Tamil Nadu Alliance aka TNA.

Also put behind bars all these racist traitor low lives church acolyte sumanthiran, shivajilingam, pigneshwaran
who stir up racial tension in the country leading to these attacks and ban race based parties. If saudi arabia,
iran, iraq, libya, turkey, afganisthan, pakesthan, maldives, syria, kuwait etc. etc. mussie countries don’t allow Buddhism why Sri Lanka? Ban the religion of violence aka fastest breeding religion to save Sri Lanka. Angola recently banned the fast breeders. Spain was saved in 1478 by banning the fast breeders. Do it now and save
Sri Lanka. After all, the brainwashed mussies can start following the only true religion in the world, Buddhism
and better their next lives.

In the end buck stops with traitor anti Buddhist, anti Sinhalese, anti Sri Lanka United National Ponnaparty since
the low lives divide the Sinhalese and make minorities king makers. Is there any wonder then, soon after
one lot of foreigners killed 100,000+, mainly Sinhalese to achieve exclusively them only only tamil drealam while
living in all parts of the country comfortably, next lot started their campaign exclusively mussie only mussiesthan
while living comfortably in all parts of the country? I’m sure Batalande wa(n)dakaya’s anti Buddhist, anti
Sinhalese, anti Sri Lanka United National Ponnaparty will be reluctant to take action since the perpetrators aren’t Buddhists to be brutal enough with its portguese police top brass like it did during the Bheeshana Samaya!

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